10 Ways to Cut Your Recruitment Costs (Part 2)

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Knife cut paper with costs wordIn part one of this article, we looked at the report, A Director’s Guide: 10 tips to Cut Recruitment Costs, from software consultancy and developer, Access.

Drawing on the findings of the CIPD’s 2010 Annual Survey Report, the guide focused on the role of technology, specifically, how HR software can help recruitment professionals gain greater returns on their recruitment spend.

A special thank you goes out this month’s Leadership Sponsors: Zoho and TheLadders. Please visit their sites to understand how these quality services can elevate your recruitment practices.

Part one examined the first five of 10 ways to reduce recruitment costs. Below are the report’s final five cost-cutting ways in the employment market :

ladders 6. Create bulk correspondence

Recruiters are very familiar with the many documents often required to be sent to candidates. According to the report, if you utilize an HR system, “the process of creating, updating and deploying bulk correspondence is simple.” It explains that templates created in Microsoft Word are linked to a recruiter’s database and merged. Recruiters can then use email to deploy any number of documents to the candidate with just a few clicks.

Because all of the applicants’ details are already held in the system, all you have to do is update a few key details (e.g. interview date, time and location) and the software does the rest. Sending documents electronically speeds up the process, makes it more secure, and reduces duplication and the likelihood of documents going missing in the post.

Highlighted benefits of using bulk correspondence:

– Create and send correspondence in a few clicks

– Deploy documentation securely

– Keep track of all documents sent

– Reduce data duplication, improve accuracy.

zoho 7. Automatically Carry out Pre-employment Checks

With the rise of legislation when it comes to background checks, the report explains that you don’t want anything to slip through the cracks during this part of the recruiting process. An HR system makes the process of carrying out these pre-employment checks easy to manage, the report says.

Using pre-screening, questions like, “Are you eligible to work in the (country name)?” can instantly rule out unsuitable candidates. The report notes that passports and other documents can be quickly scanned and stored in the employees’ record.

Recruiters can also set up email “triggers” for specific dates, which the report says will provide early warning of expiration dates/renewals, and reports run at any time to help you quickly review (and chase up) any pending or outstanding issues.

Highlighted benefits of automatic pre-employment screening:

– Ensure all key checks are carried out

– Reduce admin and save time

– Receive early warning of potential issues

– Reporting on demand

8. Streamline the Onboarding Process

Every recruiter knows that employee onboarding can significantly influence retention and turnover rates. The report explains that an HR system can offer your business an efficient and streamline onboarding experience.

How is this?

Well, the report suggests setting up new hires in payroll. Instead of using the traditional method of first entering the applicant’s details into one system (such as a spreadsheet) and then into the payroll itself, the report suggests choosing an integrated HR and payroll system to eliminate the need for duplicate information. With the system, much of the employee’s information will already exist electronically; therefore, reducing the amount of information (and necessary time) an HR professional must add.

For security, information originated on the HR side is sent into a ‘holding pen’ for the payroll operator to approve. On validating the information, the system is updated in a single click, keeping the business in sync at all times – essential for reporting and keeping decision-makers up to date.

Highlighted benefits of streamlined onboarding:

– Eliminate data duplication within payroll team

– Save time and decrease errors

– Gain a real-time view across your business

– Keep decision makers up to date.

9. Reporting On-Demand

According to the report, although having one place to record all your recruitment activity is essential, getting accurate information out is equally as important. It explains that a comprehensive selection of board reports will enable recruiters to present KPIs—such as cost per hire, time per hire, and number of applicants per vacancy— at the touch of a button.

Good software vendors will also provide in-built “dashboards,” the report notes, which enable recruiters to view this information in graphical formats, such as graphs and charts.

To give you the widest possible view of your recruitment spend, the software provider should be able to configure reports for you, and be able to draw information from other areas of the business if required. These can also be scheduled to run on a set timeframe (monthly or weekly, for example) and emailed out automatically.

Highlighted benefits of reporting on-demand:

– Eliminate the use of spreadsheets

– Reports at the touch of a button

– All information in one place

– Give managers ability to run their own reports

– Get a real-time view of KPIs

10. Utilize Self-Service

Self-service can play a major role in reducing costs, the report states, because it provides staff and managers with access to data held within the HR system, usually via a web portal such as the company intranet. By enabling staff to update information (such as address and bank details) and also to submit requests (such as absence), the admin burden is lifted from HR and dispersed to the wider business – and data accuracy is vastly improved, the report notes.

For recruitment, self-service allows HR and recruitment managers to play an active role in all stages of the process. For example, they can put in an application for a new role, review all the applications/CVs that are going through the system and approve new starter information. All stages are subject to process flows, meaning data submitted into self-service enters an approval chain and is subject to your chosen checks and approvals.

Highlighted benefits of utilizing self-service:

– Ensure all hires follow specific sign-off procedure (e.g. are checked against budget)

– Lift admin burden on HR

– Provide managers with visibility of applications

– Secure online access for staff

A special thank you goes out this month’s Leadership Sponsors: Zoho and TheLadders. Please visit their sites to understand how these quality services can elevate your recruitment practices.

By Shala Marks